19TH HOLE: THE READERS TAKE OVER

COUNTRY STYLESirs:I am well past 80 years of age and have been following the harness horses for over 65 of those years.

I have just returned from the 1960 Hambletonian and want to commend and congratulate you on "Country Horse and City Horse" (EDITORIALS, Sept. 5).

I knew the men in whose minds the Hambletonian was conceived. I know what their thoughts would be if it were ever given to one of the big city night tracks or to a running track that has gone over to the harness races for additional revenue. They wouldn't want it.BRUCE E. NOWLENSt. Paul

YOUNG YOUNGNOT ONLY WILL ABILENE CHRISTIAN COLLEGE HAVE A GOOD FOOTBALL TEAM IN 1960 (Scouting Reports, Sept. 19), WE HAD A GOOD TRACK MAN AT ROME. "19-YEAR-OLD, SOMEWHAT FRIGHTENED EARL YOUNG" (The Most Exciting Five Minutes, Sept. 19) IS A JUNIOR AT ABILENE. HE RAN THE SECOND LAP AS THE U.S. 1,600-METER RELAY TEAM SET OLYMPIC AND WORLD RECORD OF 3:02.2. AT 19 HE WAS THE YOUNGEST MALE U.S. TRACK MAN TO WIN A GOLD MEDAL AT ROME.CHARLIE MARLERABILENE, TEXAS

Jim Brown, the Cleveland Browns' explosive line-plunging fullback, gained fame as a college halfback while at Syracuse. In the next four pages he reveals how that early training led to his present success

EXORCISEDSirs:In recent months SPORTS ILLUSTRATED has contained an article on "superb sport" and "warm Russian hospitality" in Soviet Crimea; a picture from a French Communist newspaper of a Red Chinese expedition going up Mount Everest; drawings of the Russian decathlon champion; movie-star-type photographs of Olympic entrants from Russia and her satellites; and, most recently, color pictures of a festival in Communist Czechoslovakia.

JAYNE VS. JANESirs:I would like to correct your story concerning me and my connection with the Dallas Texans pro football club (SCORE-CARD, Sept. 12).

When Lamar Hunt brought pro football to Dallas and a booster organization called the Spur Club was being organized, I called Mr. Hunt to inquire whether or not I might be eligible.

Needless to say, such an inquiry from one bearing the name of his nemesis did jolt him a bit, but he was very nice and told me that if I was really interested I could become a candidate for membership. As the only female member, I have sold over 150 season tickets, but strictly on a voluntary basis. I was not "hired" by Mr. Hunt and have not received any money whatsoever for my services, nor have I been on radio or TV.

Incidentally, the "other" Jane Murchison is Clint Jr.'s wife, not his daughter.JAYNE MURCHISONDallas

UNSUNG WINNERSSirs:Since when is the loser (i.e., Jean Ashley) in a national tournament entitled to the headlines and major portion of the story while the gal by whom she was clobbered (i.e., JoAnne Gunderson), one of the few two-time winners of the women's national, rates barely honorable mention (The Ashley Factor, Sept. 5)?

Now if Ashley were just a youngster or if she had even waged a stirring battle in the finals, some justification might be offered for devoting such lavish copy to her. But a 6 and 5 defeat can hardly be considered suspenseful, dramatic or stirring. Your story would seem to be directed toward encouraging competitors to lose if they wish to win acclaim.

JoAnne Gunderson is the youngest of five children in an average American family of moderate circumstances. Only through sheer determination, great sacrifice and the support of a few people who recognized her great talent has she been able to compile the outstanding record which your reporter chose to ignore. Besides which, she is currently the intercollegiate champion. She played in five major tournaments this year, won two, finished in the semifinals in two and lost a close match midway through the other. Not many pros have a better performance percentage!MR. AND MRS. GORDON JENKINSAlbuquerque

Sirs:Who is the NCAA men's golf champion this year, and who was he last year (One Whale of a Golfer, Sept. 12)? Whom do you suppose he had to beat to be NCAA champion? You guessed it. Jack Nicklaus.

You put Nicklaus' picture on the cover of your magazine because you think he plays well. The champ who beat him, Richard Crawford, has proved himself and you give him two half lines. Let's be fair!W. C. GRAY, M.D.Springhill, La.

•Losers sometimes are bigger news than winners, and SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a news magazine. Champions Gunderson and Crawford (see above) have won their way into previous issues.—ED.

Sirs:Jack Nicklaus will have quite a time winning the PGA "as an amateur." As an amateur, he can't play in it.MARTIN L. PARKSBaltimore

STAN'S FANSSirs:I am quite sure that the pride and humility that have helped make Stan Musial the most popular ballplayer of his time will also enable him to choose the proper time to say farewell. If Musial leaves the game with "a wave, a grin and a double lined up the alley in right center field," as some sportswriters suggest, I would never cease wondering how many more doubles and home runs would have been yet to come. To my way of thinking, a sporadically good Musial is better than no Musial at all.

To the multitude of fans who have grown up with and admired The Man, baseball will be somewhat less important when he leaves. There is no one in the game who can take his place, so let us not be too quick to advise Musial to make a "graceful exit."KARL W. GLANDER, D.D.S.Red Bank, N.J.

•For SPORTS ILLUSTRATED'S views on retirement see page 12.—ED.

NO SURRENDERSirs:In answer to Reader G. J. Burke (19th HOLE, Sept. 12) we were not allowed to vote for our own teammates in the All-Star Game, and in the players' pennant poll (Danny vs. Casey, Aug. 22) we were also asked not to vote for our own teams.

As for myself, I didn't vote because at the time of the poll we were only three games out of first place and I sincerely thought we could win it, so I'm sure the Orioles, White Sox and Yankees voted for the team they thought would be their toughest competition. They weren't conceding anything and definitely not "giving up."JOHNNY TEMPLECleveland

LONG PUTTERSirs:If that gorilla can hit 423 yards (SCORECARD, Sept. 5)—what happened on his third stroke? Who won the hole, Sam Snead or the gorilla?R. E. McCLENDONAlbuquerque

•Snead. The gorilla's third stroke, like his second, carried 423 yards, leaving him 846 yards from the hole, and proving that golf is for the primate who thinks for himself.—ED.

MECHANIZED MOUNTAINEERINGSirs:I agree with Reader Boeth (19TH HOLE, Sept. 12) that excessive mechanization in mountaineering is regrettable and undesirable, but as the lone American on a predominantly Swiss expedition I could not control the decision. Moreover, the true mountaineering problems on Dhaulagiri's northeast ridge begin above 19,000 feet.

Also, please note that the airplane was not employed as a climbing aid, but rather to eliminate several weeks of approach march and hundreds of porters; whereas this year's Indian Everest expedition hired 600 porters and 50 Sherpas, we used no porters and only seven Sherpas before the demise of the Yeti. American Alaskan expeditions have used airplanes for similar purposes for 30 years. No one cried foul when Hillary and Fuchs raced to the South Pole in snow Weasels.NORMAN DYHRENFURTHSan Diego